Page 57 of Yo Ho Ho
Wait for her? Because it wasn't bad enough that she had to go tell Jordan she couldn't take their gifts. Now she had to do it in front of her boss.
"Hey." Jordan and Logan turned and both smiled at her as she walked back over to them. She wished they wouldn't. She could already feel her face burning with embarrassment. "So I'm headed out and just wanted to say that I really appreciate the gifts, but I can't take them."
Jordan gave her a perplexed look. "Why not?"
"Company policy," she said. "You know, journalism ethics and all that. I didn't want to make it a big deal earlier."
Logan stared at her. "But your paper is going under in two days." The look on his face changed dramatically from anger to sadness. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that, Max. I—"
She held her hand up to stop him. She had just said that to Barry herself, but Max knew her editor was right. She had to play by the rules no matter how close she was to the end. And if it wasn't bad enough, she just couldn't rehash the argument with Logan in that parking lot a week ago. As soon as the expression on his face changed, she knew he remembered that moment as much as she did. He was once again trying to convince her to do something that went against the rules of her job because her job wasn't going to exist much longer.
There were so many things she wanted to say, so many emotions she wanted to explain.
"I appreciate what you did for me, I really do. But I still have to live with corporate policy for a few more days."
Jordan nodded. "Yeah, it's OK. We get it."
"But we don't like it," Logan said bitterly.
She wasn't sure how to respond to this sour version of Logan, a man who was trying to defend her in a way that seemed chivalrous but intense. Maybe too intense.
"Thank you, guys," she said. "Hopefully, I'll see you again soon."
"I hope so," Jordan said.
Logan, however, crossed his arms in front of him and stood there, staring at her. She didn't know what to say or how to respond to this incredulous version of Logan. He wasn't mad at her. He was mad for her, was mad at the situation and the position her editor had put her in. And maybe he was mad about something else, something more personal, but it wasn't something that Max could dwell on now.
Instead, she could only say her goodbyes again and walk over to her editor, giving him a small nod before she left the locker room for the last time.
Chapter 20
Logan had been deliberate in his thinking about how this would all play out.
He headed home after the game, still bitter about what had happened to Max. The look on her face when she came back over and said she couldn't take their gifts was heartbreaking. As soon as he saw what was happening, he knew exactly why her editor had pulled her away. Sure, it may have been the paper's policy, but the paper was going under. Forcing Max to stick to company policy like that in the locker room with the players still there was crap.
So Logan volunteered to take the gift to Max's apartment.
"How do you even know where Max lives?" Jordan asked him.
"I met with her the other day for drinks to talk about some of the ideas she had for what to do next."
The captain gave him a perplexed look. "So to be clear, Max came to you for career advice? Really?"
Logan shrugged. "Is that so hard to believe?"
"Yeah, it is." Jordan pulled his suit jacket out of his locker and put it on. "Whatever. Just take the bag. If you don't give it to her, Charlotte is going to be on my case about it. Make sure you remind Max about the invite in there."
"Right."
Logan didn't always like it, but he tried to follow his captain's instructions whenever Jordan told him to do something. If it led to an added bonus of kissing Max to ring in the New Year, so be it.
He had gone home after the game to change out of his suit and into some red track pants and a white t-shirt. It was kind of festive and would be quick and easy to take off once he was at Max's place. Yeah, he thought his outfit through. He also made sure not to shave his face, thinking the stubble that had grown in the past few days made him look more appealing to an attractive woman.
He headed out of his building to a store in downtown Birmingham to get a gift box for Max for his own present he wanted to give to her. It was nothing crazy or fancy, just something that he thought she would appreciate.
With his own box tucked into the gift bag from Jordan, he finally set out for Max's place. The city was dark, the winter sky crisp and clear. There were advantages to having an afternoon game. Sure, he had to get up much earlier than usual, but he also got to have a little more time to get some things done before finally getting to bed. The day games made him feel tired earlier in the night, but going to Max's place was definitely a good idea if it meant he could get a good night's rest with her.
Logan easily found a parking spot in front of her building and walked in. But as he got closer to her door, he started to doubt himself. Should he have called before coming over? Would she be upset that he was surprising her like this?
